INTERESTED IN FUS IMAGING ?

fUS is sensitive enough to detect blood flow in very small vessels in the entire depth of the brain and without the need for contrast agents.

Please contact us if you want to evaluate all advantages of fUS technology for your research projects. Email: alan.urban@alan-urban.fr

For more informations, see the corresponding Menu at the top of this page.

IMAGING OF BRAIN DISEASES

Brain Imaging includes different methods that fall into two broad categories: structural and functional imaging. Structural imaging investigates the structure of the brain and can be used for the diagnosis of large-scale intracranial diseases such as tumors, and injuries.

Functional imaging reveals the activity in certain brain regions by detecting changes in metabolism, blood flow, regional chemical composition and/or absorption. The major challenge in the years ahead will be to combine both real-time and non-invasive brain imaging.

Brain imaging technologies are crucial for understanding the relationships between specific areas of the brain and their function, helping to locate the areas of the brain that are affected by diseases or neurological disorders and build new strategies to treat them.

UNDERSTANDING THE BRAIN THROUGH INNOVATIVE IMAGING TECHNOLOGIES

Rapidly apply insights gained from model organisms to human health

To better understand the normal brain, we are studying pathologies including stroke, psychiatric diseases, pain and epilepsy serving as models of brain circuit dysfunction. Our team seeks to accelerate the development of the breakthrough technologies to build versatile and costless tools to image brain activity and brain networks at both micro and macro-scales.

To address the challenges presented by neuroimaging, we develop a broad, interdisciplinary and translational science based on our own expertise and fruitfull collaborations with scientists, industries and citizens from all around the world.

These pages also aim at providing basic information on optogenetics, in vivo brain imaging and recording of electrical activity. Please use the top menu to navigate through the pages.

Our main research interests are summarized below:

If you require any further information, please feel free to contact me: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Note that this website is under construction (some menu links are not yet available) and will be updated soon.

LAST PUBLICATIONS

JCBFM - Functional UltraSound in a stroke model

Functional ultrasound imaging efficiently mapped the acute changes in relative cerebral blood volume during occlusion and following reperfusion with high spatial resolution (100 mm), notably documenting marked focal decreases during occlusion, and was able to chart the fine dynamics of tissue reperfusion in the individual rat.

A multidisciplinary team

Our team combines a set of unique expertise including neurobiology, brain imaging, physics/acoustics, computer-science, molecular biology, pharmacology and more for understanding brain function.

Open Source Technologies

We make all technologies freely available for the scientific community.
As soon as results are published, we release all protocols, codes and hardware to allow everyone to use technologies from our lab.

Translational Research

Translational research helps turn early-stage innovations into new health products, advancing the innovation to the point where it becomes attractive for further development by the medical industry or healthcare agencies.
See our last patents.

RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT

Our research is focused on research and development of innovative technologies to better understand neural circuits and brain physiology.

We are currently working on 2 breakthrough imaging modalities that have been designed to become a centerpiece in both preclinical and clinical studies as it can be used to diagnose metabolic diseases and lesions on a finer scale, for neurological and cognitive psychological research as well as brain-computer interfaces.

Functional ultrasound imaging (fUSi) = Imaging of brain hemodynamic activity at mesoscopic scale in the entire depth of the brain

Also known as potentiometric dyes, VSD are dyes which change their spectral properties in response to voltage changes. They are able to provide linear measurements of firing activity of single neurons, large neuronal populations or cardiomyocytes. Many others physiological processes are accompanied by changes in cell membrane potential which can be detected with VSD. Measurements may indicate the site of action potential origin, and measurements of action potential velocity and direction may be obtained.

OUR LAB IN INTERNATIONAL CONGRESS & EVENTS

Invited Seminar Mayo Clinic, Rochester, USA February 5th, 2015 Title: Functional UltraSound (fUS) imaging of brain activity: from rodents to humans. Summary: Brain imaging technologies are crucial for understanding the relationships between specific areas of the brain and their function in normal brain but also helping to locate the areas of the brain that are affected by diseases or neurological disorders in pathological brain. Functional ultrasound (fUS) imaging is an innovative imaging... Read More...